Cyanocobalamin

[Fiona1039]

I am interested in hearing if anyone has experience of taking the cyanocobalamin 50mcg tablets? My gp is trying these with me as the injections were causing dreadful headaches, nausea etc! Haven't started them yet as keep reading bad reports on them making people ill!! Surely they can't be right it is surely just a vitamin

[fbirder]

Some people are worried about the fact that it contains cyanide. However, the amounts are incredibly small. 50ug of cyanocobalamin will produce about 1ug of Hydrogen Cyanide. To put it into context - that's about the same amount as you'll find in 0.5ml of prune juice.

[deniseinmilden]

Only 50 mcg?

I have tried the 5mg ones (5000 mcg) & they are fine for me although not as effective as the methyl ones - for me.

Good luck in trying to find something that works for you.

[helvella]

The British National Formulary says:

Apart from dietary deficiency, all other causes of vitamin B12 deficiency are attributable to malabsorption. There is little place for the use of low-dose vitamin B12 orally and none for vitamin B12 intrinsic factor complexes given by mouth. Vitamin B12 in larger oral doses of 1–2 mg daily [unlicensed] may be effective.

evidence.nhs.uk/formulary/b...

Assuming your GP is able to read, he must have a severe difficulty in comprehension. Or he is saying that you suffer a simple dietary deficiency? (You surely wouldn't be here if that was all that was involved.)

Mind, it really does come to something when the BNF has to explicitly state that unlicensed supplements "may be effective". What on earth is the whole medicine approval and endorsement process doing when it cannot approve a well-tolerated, usually safe, widely available supplement such as 1000 or 5000 micrograms of methylcobalamin by mouth?